With so many schools adopting new cashless catering methods, the introduction of biometric recognition can be a mind field. Many concerns are raised when introducing these systems, so we’ve put together the top three common myths of biometric recognition and share the true benefits that our cashless catering systems provide over 2700 schools across the UK.

1.Parents’ Consent Isn’t Obtained

A common misperception is that parental consent is not valued or taken into consideration when schools implement cashless catering systems or biometric readers. This is not the case and as of 2012, in English law schools must ask for consent. Guidance states that when using cashless catering systems parents must be consulted and their wishes respected. All schools using our cashless catering system must comply with legal regulations, using opt-in forms which parents must sign before their child is enrolled.

Cashless catering systems provide parents with additional benefits such as being able to top up and view their child’s transaction history remotely. Where parents place so much effort into providing their children with healthy nutritious meals at home, they often have no visibility over what foods their child regularly eats at school. This visibility contributes to encouraging a balanced diet.

2. Children GetUsed to High Tech Monitoring

The fear of surveillance especially with children is sometimes wrongly associated with biometric recognition. With recent technological advancements, many devices now use fingerprint or retina recognition to store information. Our Cashless catering systems only store minimal data points and this information cannot lead to a fingerprint being reconstructed for fraudulent use.

Educational software has recently been a hot topic in the news with major technology companies like Google and Apple striving to implement better learning solutions to increase classroom interactivity and development. Using the improvements that technology bring, schools can focus more on delivering high quality first class education to their pupils.

Data is essential to any management body and schools are at the forefront of using measuring values to determine effectiveness. With lunch periods becoming difficult and potentially cumbersome in many schools, data collected through the cashless catering system can lead to quicker queue times, resulting in happier children.

3. No Alternatives to Biometrics

Whilst it is often assumed that there are no alternatives for pupils who choose not to participate in biometric readers – this is wrong. Both parents and pupils have the option to choose an alternative method of recognition and depending on the system this can include a contactless card or a PIN code unique to each pupil. These options are available to all pupils and parents using the cashless catering systems.

The Benefits of Cashless Catering

Biometric cashless catering systems provide huge benefit to the schools using them and have been known to dramatically reduce queue times, decrease staff resource and reduce food wastage. An Edinburgh Council spokesperson said, “The use of fingerprint recognition for school meals is beneficial for the pupils and catering staff as it’s easier to use, speeds up service at the till and takes away the risk of pupils losing their lunch payment cards”. CRB Cunninghams has been providing biometric recognition software to schools across the UK for over ten years, contributing to a more efficient meal service, reduced queues and happier children.